Ravi Deshpande, Chief Creative Officer, Contract Advertising

“We believe that if a brand has to create an equity that time cannot erode, the communication idea around it has to be eternally young. It has to be an exciting idea that energises the brand. It has to make the brand highly desirable to people, no matter what the brand is. That’s the kind of work we will remain engaged in – impeccably executed, unusual ideas that set our brands apart from the rut and build them to be unforgettable. We will remain engaged in creating work that the audience will enjoy and relish. Along the way if some awards happen to come by, that would be great. Right now though, we are concentrating on the means rather than the end.”

Contract Advertising has always seen good times when Ravi Deshpande has been around. In his first innings as the agency’s National Creative Director, Deshpande led Contract to the position of the number one creative agency in India. And now as Chief Creative Officer, Deshpande, by unveiling a new creative vision statement, has once again given a lot to talk about of the agency and has enthused a spark of vibrancy in the agency. In conversation with exchange4media’s Pritie S Jadhav, Deshpande reflects on the past and unveils future plans. Excerpts:

Q. Where is the advertising industry in India as well as globally headed?

Advertising that elicits an immediate emotional reaction from people – be it laughter, sadness or a meaningful nod – will always work. Ads that have a universal idea in it work, an idea with a human insight, that’s the phenomenon globally. It is important to have a local flavour in your work, but not a local idea that connects with only a few states in the country. For instance, Thai advertising is seeped in local flavour. They are very Thai. But they have ideas that can send the whole world in splits. That should be the way the Indian advertising industry should go.

We have a new vision for Contract, so the identity is bound to follow. And so will a lot of exciting work.

Advertising happens to be a business that is essentially driven by the same processes everywhere in the world. However, the difference lies in the depth and breadth of strategic and creative thinking. Regions like Thailand and Latin America often work on similar strategies as we do. But, the way they express it is what makes them infinitely more creative. That’s probably because as people, they are a very chilled out and unpretentious bunch. They are naturally fun loving people, whereas Indians by nature are inhibited and always too cautious. The day we loosen up a bit, we will truly start competing globally. And that has kind of started to happen, but it is still not enough.

With the passage of time, what usually happens to brands is that their image remains stuck in time. They gradually lose the lustre of youth. Contract’s focus is to build brands that flourish with time, not age with it. We believe brands should grow in wealth, fame and stature. But they should never grow old. And the only way a brand can remain eternally young is by reinventing itself with the changing times.

Build a formidable creative force and create a working environment where producing great ideas is a matter of habit. The kind of work we will create through these exciting minds is going to help us achieve an even bigger target – and that is to keep our brands young and desirable forever.

Well, Contract used to be the most creative agency in the country, and that’s the only thing we would like to carry forward from the past. When I rejoined Contract, it was as good as a new agency for me. Nothing of the past existed, except a very strong desire to do great work. In fact, in a very short time, we’ve been able to create a whole new ambience that’s charged with positive energy and an enthusiasm to do better and better work. So, there’s definitely a change. We’ll do everything possible to make Contract one of the most creative agencies around, possibly, the best in the business.

There is a perceptible difference already. In fact, you will start seeing striking ads coming out of Contract on a pretty regular basis. Some good stuff is already happening on Halls, Asian Paints Royale, HSBC, Disney, Louis Philippe, Shoppers’ Stop, and there will be more. It will keep getting better and better with time.

We believe that if a brand has to create an equity that time cannot erode, the communication idea around it has to be eternally young. It has to be an exciting idea that energises the brand. It has to make the brand highly desirable to people, no matter what the brand is. That’s the kind of work we will remain engaged in – impeccably executed, unusual ideas that set our brands apart from the rut and build them to be unforgettable. We will remain engaged in creating work that the audience will enjoy and relish. Along the way if some awards happen to come by, that would be great. Right now though, we are concentrating on the means rather than the end.

The ‘Grow Young’ vision of Contract fits very well with our clients’ aspirations and is crafted around our clients’ interest and benefits the brand. There is absolutely no dissonance or any conflict of interests.

It’s always nice when things get better with time. And in the next five years, advertising, too, should be a little better than what it is now. Globally, the standards of execution have risen a great deal, which is wonderful. In the coming years, unconventional media will have an even huger role to play in brand communication. Technology will drive creativity in a big way and vice-versa.

From the time I have joined, I’ve been focussing on building a strong creative team at all levels so that everyone contributes to the table, not just a few people. There were already a few good people in Contract, and there are more now, with some more are coming in. With a great team coming together, I already feel I’m highly dispensable.

The clutter of brands is much more today than it used to be earlier. It’s not difficult for brands to get lost in the crowd. So, if a brand is indispensable to you, so should be the idea associated with it. For example, “Don’t spend your whole life waiting”, is an idea indispensable to Mercedes. If you try and use this idea for other car brands, no matter how big or how great, it just doesn’t fit. When a brand finds its own, distinctive voice that stems from honesty, it becomes a property indispensable to that brand.

Currently, we are stuck with the same old mediocrity in mass media. Most commercials are a blind spot because they are kind of formulaic. Unconventional media are not used creatively. What’s happening in reality, however, is that India is going the China way, which is rooted in traditions to a certain extent, but highly westernised in their lifestyle and thinking.

Tastes are changing. People want better-looking things. They like to indulge, aspire to have bigger flats, bigger cars, better shopping environment, eating out, educating their children in better schools and colleges. There’s a trend towards sending kids to English medium schools because it’s the only language that a Tamilian and a Punjabi can converse in. And these trends are not restricted to just the metros. So, the Indian is thinking global and they need to be catered to accordingly.

I had no idea. So, I don’t know how to react off-hand. I suppose it must be aspirational for them to have a similar identity.